The Washoe County Sheriff's Office (WCSO) held an awards night on Wednesday for employees and civilians who have acted heroically on the job or in helping out the force.

Darin Balaam, the Sheriff of the WCSO says, "You know it's always important I think to recognize those who do good things, so we can encourage and thank them for what they did and encourage others to do the same."

Asa Aninao a Deputy Sheriff of the WCSO adds, "You know you can go from teaching a class to responding to a shooting call, so it's you know, different."

Aninao received the Medal of Valor for his action during a domestic violence situation.

He says, "I just happened to be in the area, I was at the right place at the right time and I was able to help them in a time of need so it was a great feeling."

Meanwhile, a lieutenant from the WCSO, Amelia Galicia, received two Meritorious Unit Citation Awards alongside her entire hostage negotiation team, for dealing with a man who barricaded himself with two children. 

She explains, "Through the efforts of our team we were able to successfully negotiate his surrender, and the safety of both of the children was in tact and we were able to get them to safety as well."

Galicia also says it's an unexpected award, but also a huge honor to receive.

She says, "We do it because we believe in the practice, and we want to help people and bring chaotic stressful situations to a peaceful surrender."

It wasn't just law enforcement receiving awards tonight, civilians who contributed to keeping the community safe were also honored.

Aninao tells us, "It's huge you know, our civilian workers they do a lot of hard work that goes unseen at the Washoe County Sheriff's Office."

Galicia adds, "They offer a huge support system and they actually make it so much easier for us to do our jobs."

Heather Dreiling, a Victim Advocate for the WCSO says, "Some days its domestic violence, some days it's comforting people who have just had a family member that they've lost or been murdered."

Dreiling helps the WCSO and was awarded the Meritorious Service Medal for her efforts.

She says, "You never expect to get an award, it's somewhat of a thankless job, but you do it because it's what makes your soul feel good."

Balaam tells us, "We have a lot of great men and women both commission and non that do great things for our community every single day."